YORK has been ranked amongst the best cities in the UK in which to live and work.

In a list published by the Telegraph newspaper this week, York was ranked the seventh most "liveable" city in the UK – the only city in the north of England to place in the top 10.

Plymouth was named as Britain’s best city with mega-cities such as London, Manchester and Birmingham on the bottom of the pile.

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The research, which was completed by PwC, sees cities across the nation assessed on 12 criteria: health, income, jobs, safety, skills, work-life balance, housing, commuting to work times, income equality, high street shops environment, and business start-ups.

It also seeks to highlight an ‘increasing imbalance’ fuelled by access to resources.

Rachel Taylor, of PwC, said: “Raising prosperity across the UK is needed more than ever as we continue to see growing inequality in housing, jobs and education.

“There is an increasing imbalance within and between neighbourhoods, which is being driven by disparities in access to quality education, jobs and housing.

“This is felt not only across different regions, but also between people living within the same postcodes in cities.”

Cities in the east of England were named the most improved, with York highlighted as a city that has improved on income distribution and jobs.

The top and bottom 10 of Britain’s most and least liveable cities is as follows:

Top 10:

  1. Plymouth
  2. Bristol
  3. Southampton
  4. Swindon
  5. Reading
  6. Exeter
  7. York
  8. Norwich
  9. Edinburgh
  10. Oxford

Bottom 10:

  1. Swansea
  2. Sheffield
  3. Sunderland
  4. Manchester
  5. Newcastle
  6. Walsall
  7. Birmingham
  8. London
  9. Bradford
  10. Middlesbrough and Stockton